Smoke and Fire
by HillBot
Summary: The Grandline Fire Department fights a possible arson fire when something goes wrong.


Title: Smoke and Fire

Pairing: Zoro x Sanji

Rating: PG-13

Summary: The Grandline Fire Department fights a possible arson fire when something goes wrong.

Warnings: AU and One Piece certainly isn't mine.

Notes: I'm not sure if this has ever been done before but I've had the firefighter AU in my head for awhile. To be honest, ever since I saw Chuck and Larry. I don't claim to know anything about firefighters or nursing so if I've completely botched information, let me know. The title is incredibly generic because I'm terrible with titles. Finally, I want to thank the wonderful poutergeist over on LJ for fixing up all my mistakes and giving me help where I needed it!

The fire at the Going Merry Apartment Complex raged against the late night sky as the Grandline Fire Department continued its attempts to contain the flames. Ace Portgas, a local arsonist and the fire chief's brother, had been suspected and apprehended by Smoker, the police captain. He was currently being handcuffed, yelled at and inspected for any injuries, by the officer. Being such a small town, gossip flowed quickly through the area and it didn't take long for the townspeople to learn the nature of the officer and arsonist's relationship. The town had hoped that Smoker would help keep the boy in line and, he had, for the most part, aside from a few minor brush fires which were easily overlooked. But this, an entire building filled with actual people who could have been injured, was a completely different story and even Smoker couldn't ignore what was going on if Ace was to be proved guilty.

"I didn't do it, old man!" Ace continued to protest, barely loud enough to be heard over the blaze.

"Just shut up, brat, and sit in the damn squad car until I get this figured out." With that he pushed the struggling man into the back of his car and slammed the door before walking over to fire chief Luffy to discuss what to do next.

Luffy was one of the youngest fire chiefs the town ever had. After Redford "Red" Shanks retired from the position he highly recommended Luffy to be his replacement and, having no other applicants for the position, the boy was hired. The town was wary of the decision at first but since they generally had no large fires they soon forgot what they were worried about in the first place and embraced the young man as chief. He was strong after all, and had a great team standing behind him. Zoro Roronoa and Sanji Blackleg, two of the strongest men in town, and Usopp Sogeking who was incredibly accurate with a fire hose. With those three behind him Chief Luffy was commended all over town.

Smoker stood with the fire chief who was staring at the burning building wearing an uncharacteristically worried expression.

"Was it arson? " Luffy asked flatly

"We're not sure yet. Once the fire's out I'll have my men start the investigation."

"If it was, he won't get away with it this time. He'll go to jail." The chief murmured, sadly.

Smoker sighed. "I'm afraid so. Don't worry just yet though. There's still the investiga-"

Smoker was cut off by a shuddering crack, the sound of wood snapping from inside the building. The fire roared louder than ever and licked higher, illuminating the dark sky. Luffy began speaking into his radio. "It's going down guys. Get out of there now." It never ceased to amaze Smoker at how calm the boy and his squad could be in times of crisis. Not long after Luffy called them out, three distinct shapes were seen moving through the smoke. Coming into view was Usopp followed by Zoro and Sanji. Sanji was carrying a very hysterical woman in his arms who appeared as though she did not want to be saved. Instead she struggled to get out of Sanji's grasp, reaching back towards the burning building and screaming.

Sanji brought her to an ambulance and rejoined his captain while the EMT's set to work on her. Although she stopped struggling, she continued to wail at the top of her lungs.

_"My boy! He's still in there! Please, you've got to save him!"_ Her cries were punctuated by another loud snapping sound coming from within the building. _"Oh, God, help him! My baby!"_And with that she dissolved into tears while the EMT's tried to console and treat her simultaneously.

Luffy, Usopp, Zoro, and Sanji stood watching the sad scene. They all knew going back inside was hardly an option. The building was incredibly unsafe and the chance that the woman's son would still be alive was very slim. She locked eyes with each member of the team and, seemingly reading their minds, began to weep even harder.

Zoro sighed, turned around, and began walking back towards the building, readjusting his helmet. Sanji knew what was going through the man's head and was immediately against it. He caught up with Zoro and began walking in step with him.

"Oh, no, no, no. You are _not_ doing what I think you are."

"We've gotta get that kid outta there."

"Zoro, you can't go in there! It's caving in!"

"I'll just have to be fast then." And with that, he started to run towards the building, disappearing into the smoke.

Sanji began running after Zoro but was surprised to be held back by a pair of thin but strong arms. "Captain!" He protested.

"Let him go."

"But-"

"He made his decision. You'll only get hurt if you go in there now." Luffy felt the man go limp in his arms and gave him a light squeeze. "It will be okay. Zoro's strong. He'll make it out."

"Yeah."_ I hope so._

* * *

It was only after Zoro had entered the building in such a rush that he realized he had not bothered to find out what floor of the apartment building the woman and her son had lived on, forcing him to call out through the flames and ash and hope someone would respond. He had made it to the third floor before his oxygen tank began running dangerously low and, on top of that, the place was caving in all around him. Zoro generally wasn't the worrying type but right now the situation wasn't looking too good.

"Heeey!" Zoro projected his voice as loud as he could. He pushed through all the fallen debris and moved on to the next hall, opening doors and calling into each apartment as he went by. _Shit! There's no way I'm gonna make it to every one of these rooms._ There were three more floors the boy could be on. He was almost certain the top floor had caved in by now but there was no way he can be sure. While he had been searching, the staircase leading up to the next floor had collapsed and flaming debris were blocking what few stairs were left. That was it. He had to get out of there. Zoro looked back one last time and shouted "HEEEEEEY!" then stood silently.

"..H..p...e"

Zoro's ears perked up at the sound. He yelled out again louder than before, praying that he wasn't just hearing things.

"Help me!" This time the voice was much more distinct and Zoro was certain of the direction it was coming from. He opened the apartment door and continued calling out and listening for the boy's responding cry, playing a sort of life or death version of Marco Polo. Finally, he located a small boy under the kitchen table. His clothing and face were blackened with soot and there were streaks where the tears had run down from his eyes. He was wheezing from inhaling so much smoke and straining his already raw throat to call out to his rescuer. He didn't look like he was going to last much longer.

Without putting too much thought into it, Zoro removed his gas mask and placed it over the boys face. A creaking sound came from behind him and the ceiling began showing hairline cracks. Zoro looked at the boy. He looked scared. He put his helmet on him, too.

"I'm going to get you out of here. Your mom is waiting for you outside, okay? Just trust me and keep that mask on your face." And with that he lifted the boy in his arms, turned, and ran from the apartment. He reached the second floor quickly but the ceiling had fallen in and now large beams of flaming wood were blocking the steps leading to the first floor. He set the boy down against the wall and set his air tank next to him. The boy watched as the green haired man slowly and carefully lifted each of the beams and set them aside. He would have normally gone much faster but the air was so thick with smoke and ash, and inhaling it made breathing a bit of a chore.

Just as he was moving the final obstruction out of the way, another beam fell from the ceiling. Zoro's senses were getting hazy. It was hard to see, he could barely breathe, and he was starting to feel dizzy. Because of this he didn't have enough time to react to the sound and sudden change in pressure, and the beam came down hard on his back, striking him on the head and between his shoulder blades. Zoro let out a pained sound and the boy's eyes widened. He moved as if to help the man but Zoro let out a strangled "No!" and the boy stayed put. Slowly but surely, Zoro pushed himself up and shifted the beam off his back. He scooped the boy and the tank back into his arms and started out the building again, masking whatever pain he was feeling.

* * *

As Zoro stepped from the burning building and watched the hysterical mother rush to him with two EMTs he couldn't help but feel a certain sense of pride wash over him. He would never tell anyone this but rescuing children was one of his favorite things in the world. It made him feel like he was actually doing something worthwhile. He handed the boy off to a small brown haired EMT who looked like he was fresh out of medical school and then, brushing off the other EMT, walked back to the truck and the rest of his team. He felt a little wobbly on his feet but it felt good to breathe in some fresher air, even if it was hard to inhale it quietly.

"Hey, asshole, do you always have to play the fucking hero?" Sanji snapped, sounding more worried than angry. "One of these days you're gonna run right in there and get in real trouble, you know that?"

"I'm fine," he rasped out before starting to cough.

"Fine? That doesn't sound like fine to me. Jesus, how much smoke did you inhale?"

Zoro was speaking between coughs now. "Shut up," cough, "I said," cough, "I'm" cough, cough, cough, "fi-" He was overcome by a large coughing fit that wouldn't seem to end. He started to feel dizzy and he was seeing black spots in front of his eyes. The taste of blood was in his mouth and somehow, amidst all the coughing, he had ended up on the ground on all fours. Sanji knelt at his side, supporting Zoro while calling for medical attention.

"Damn it, Zoro." He heard Sanji say somewhere in the distance. "God damn it, just breath!"

Zoro watched through his blurry vision as Sanji snatched an oxygen mask from one of the medics as they rushed over. He felt the cool plastic being pressed to his face, took one last look at Sanji's worried face, and then his world went black.

* * *

Zoro eased his eyes open but, blinded by the brightness of the room, quickly shut them again. He didn't remember falling asleep, which alarmed him at first, but as he laid in the unfamiliar bed, he slowly began remembering something about a fire and a small boy. They were all still a bunch of muddled memories though. He opened his eyes again, more carefully this time, and allowed them to adjust to the light of the room. He glanced around and realized he was in a hospital. He felt a presence to his right and looked over to find Sanji sitting in an uncomfortable hospital chair, arms crossed and sleeping lightly.

Zoro tried to speak to the man, to ask him why he was here but when he did he began to choke on the breathing tube that had been put in his throat when he first arrived. Suddenly, there was a flurry of noise and movement. He heard Sanji wake up and yell for a nurse and then felt him leaning on the side of the bed. Unfortunately, he can't see anything because he's choking and tears are streaming from his eyes. Sanji is stroking his hair, telling him to calm down with a cross between worry and relief in his voice and Zoro wants to smack him because it's pretty damn hard to be calm when you can't breath and don't know why.

A nurse rushed into the room and got to work immediately. She pulled the tube from Zoro's throat with practiced ease which caused Zoro to begin coughing. She and Sanji helped him into a seated position that allowed him to take in air more easily once the coughing calmed down. While Zoro took in great gulps of clean hospital air the nurse began to check his vitals and run a few standard procedures to make sure Zoro was alright before laying him back down. She briefly explained that Zoro had breathed in a lot of toxins which did quite a bit of damage to his lungs and on top of that, the blow to the head was enough to keep him in a coma for a few days. She told him the chances of coming out of it would be slim after the third day and he had now been out for five so he should feel quite lucky. With that she left the room and told him to get as much rest as possible. The second the door closed though, the last thing he was getting was rest.

"What the fuck were you thinking, you idiot?" The look on Sanji's face was inscrutable as he stood rigidly, next to Zoro's bed.

"I wasn't," Zoro rasped out, smirking, and it was true. He hadn't really been thinking. He had just acted on instinct like he always did.

Sanji didn't seem to find Zoro's joke very funny though because before Zoro could blink the man was right in his face, gripping his shoulders hard. Zoro was about to say something but whatever insult or stupid comeback he had died in his throat. He looked at Sanji's face and suddenly understood the gravity of the situation. The lines of worry etched into Sanji's face were obvious. He wasn't trying to hide it. Zoro wasn't sure if he icould/i even hide it. The blonde shook him a little, forcing his full attention to the matter at hand.

"Don't fucking scare me like that _ever_ again, do you understand?" Zoro could feel Sanji shaking. The anger, the sorrow and the worry that's been pent up for days sending anxious tremors down the blonde's arms and legs . He was not at all surprised when Sanji doesn't even give him a chance to answer, he just leaned closer and kissed him hard. It's all teeth and tongue, no finesse, and Zoro tried to tell him through the kiss that yeah he's an idiot and he's sorry and he'll try not to let it happen again. Zoro noticed that his chest and throat really hurt but at the moment he could care less. As the kiss tuned intense, he felt the need to reassure Sanji he was alive in every way possible. The mood of the kiss quickly changed from simple reassurance to raw need. Zoro gripped the front of the blonde's shirt and roughly pulled him closer. Sanji cupped Zoro's face as the man moved to pull Sanji's shirt up just enough to feel the skin underneath. Sanji tried to do the same to Zoro but hospital gown prevented him from getting very far. Instead he settled for placing one hand over Zoro's heart and the other on the side of the mans neck. It was enough just to feel the life coursing through him. It was enough to feel him, right there, _alive_.

Unfortunately, before they could get much further, the heart monitor he was hooked on to began to beep wildly, causing Sanji to pull away quickly, looking concerned.

Zoro gasped for air, feeling lightheaded, and offered the nurse who rushed in a weak, innocent smile. Judging from the pink staining the two men's cheeks and the shortness of breath, she was quite aware of what was going on. The nurse just clucked her tongue as she rechecked Zoro's vitals, hiding a smile of her own.

The entire nurse's station knew what was going on between the firefighters the day the green haired man arrived. The blonde was constantly fretting over the unconscious man, barely taking his eyes off of him long enough to sleep. After a day and a half, one of the nurses noticed he hadn't been eating and began bringing an extra meal to the room during her breaks. Sanji probably still would have been covered head to toe with soot if the head nurse hadn't had forced him into the shower and had one of the other visitors bring him some extra clothing. When nine o'clock rolled around every night, none of the nurses had the heart to enforce the visiting hours rule and kick him out so it was no surprise when he ended up living at the hospital for the duration of his lovers' coma.

"Now, no more stressing out the patient," the nurse said with a knowing look, before exiting the room once more.

When she was gone, Sanji yawned loudly and Zoro thought he could go for a nap too right about now, regardless of the fact that he had been sleeping for five solid days. He shifted over in the too small hospital bed, patting the area beside him in silent invitation. Sanji slid in next to Zoro, carefully aware of all the wires running into the man. He clasped his hand into Zoro's free one (the one without the IV in it) and rolled onto his side, facing Zoro. Not sleeping more than a few hours a day had finally caught up with the blonde and he was out almost as soon as his head hit the pillow. Zoro brushed a quick kiss on Sanji's forehead, settled the blanket over the two of them, and drifted of as well, feeling extremely worn out.

* * *

The nurse came in to check on the two men to make sure they weren't up to anything again and smiled warmly at the sight of them sleeping peacefully together. She walked over to the bed and readjusted a few of the wires running into the larger man. Making her way out of the room a final time, she flicked the lights off, glanced back at the sleeping couple once more, and headed back out into the hallways to check on her next patient. A faint smile could be seen on her face for the rest of the day.

Omake:

Ace heard the light tinkle of keys accompanied by a dull thumping of boots approach the holding cell he was currently residing in. He laid there on the small, uncomfortable bed and listened as the foot steps came to a stop in front of his cell.

"Come for a conjugal visit, Old Man?"

Smoker ignored the man's question and began unlocking the door. "You're free to go. The elderly lady on the second floor had accidentally left her oven burning which caught on some papers on the counter and it grew from there"

"Told you I didn't do it." Ace said, turning his head to face the captain.

"What were you even doing there in the first place?"

"I _live_ there." Ace responded with a glare. "Well, lived."

"Oh," Smoker said sheepishly, "right." He slid the cell door open and Ace approached the entrance to stand opposite of Smoker but did not exit the cell. "Well," Smoker continued, "you could always, uh, stay with me. You know, just until, you, uh, get a new place?"

Ace grinned devilishly. Were Smoker's cheeks actually turning _red?_

"Are you asking me to move in with you?"

"No! I mean, yes but-" Smoker was beginning to feel incredibly flustered and he didn't like it. He didn't do flustered. He was the police captain, tough and frightening and completely unfazed by everything. Except for, apparently, right now.

Ace's grin, if at all possible, got even wider. Smoker knew this was not good. Before he could say anything more, Ace had snatched his keys from the belt loop of his uniform and bolted out the front door of the police department yelling _"See you when you get home, sweetheart!"_

This was going to be a long day.


End file.
